Former Idaho guard shining at the JUCO level

Former Division I guard Rayquawndis Mitchell has done his part in helping Otero (CO) start the season off with eight straight wins.

The 6-5 combo guard, who plays a lot of point guard, leads the team in scoring with 18 points per game, while also averaging 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assist per game. He’s currently shooting 48-percent from the field and 47-percent from three.

“I’ve been playing pretty good,” Mitchell said. “When I got recruited out of high school I was more of a wing player. But here, I can play the one a lot and especially at my size, it’s helped me a lot. Especially with my recruitment.”

Texas was at one of his games recently and saw him play, New Orleans, South Dakota, South Dakota State, Colorado and Fresno State, among others, are also tracking his progress.

Jacksonville State, who has been following him for a few months now, recently pulled the trigger on an offer that wasn’t really a surprise for him.

“They’ve been seeing me since Jamborees,” he confessed. “They liked what they saw and then came to watch me during a good time during the season. So, they just pulled the trigger on me.”

Jacksonville State is his first offer since transferring from Idaho over the summer but it will not be his last. He’s the leading scorer for the No. 12 ranked JUCO in the country and he’s taken on a leadership role of helping out the younger players that aspire to get to the Division I level.

His focus is on his team this season, helping the youngers guys progress and helping his team rack up the wins. After that, he’ll start making recruiting decisions.

“I’m just going to wait until the spring time so I can go visit these places before I make a decision,” he said. “The location won’t matter, I really just want to go somewhere I can be used all around. Especially on the offensive side where I can run the show but also get a bucket if needed.”